For local officers, de-escalation is right course

Hundreds gather Saturday around a memorial in Ferguson, Mo., to Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old who was fatally shot by a white police officer three weeks earlier. When unrest unfurled into violence in Ferguson, Missouri, this summer, many wondered how things could have been handled differently. Locally, some law enforcement agencies said the protests highlighted an important idea — de-escalating a situation before it erupts is more valuable than any weapon ever be will.(Photo: AP)

When unrest unfurled into violence in Ferguson, Missouri, this summer, many wondered how things could have been handled differently.

Locally, some law enforcement agencies said the protests highlighted an important idea — de-escalating a situation before it erupts is more valuable than any weapon ever be will.

"The last thing we want to do is get on scene and make matters worse," Sheriff John Sanner of the Stearns County Sheriff's Office said. "You can do that simply by showing too much force."

Sanner said the Stearns County Sheriff's Office doesn't have specific de-escalation training, but he stressed that there's ongoing dialogue about not escalating a situation when tensions rise.

"There's no specialized training specifically for that. It's just something ... that's part of our everyday training," Sanner said. "If there's a big detail that we're going to deploy officers to, we make sure to talk to (deputies) before they get deployed."

Use mouths first

Benton County Chief Deputy Troy Heck said things are handled similarly in Benton County. He said that while the department doesn't have any specific de-escalation training, the strategies the office implements seem to be working.

"There's no requirement that we do de-escalation training," Heck said. "There's a component of de-escalation that's talked about when taking our use of force of training, however. We need to use our mouths before we use our weapons."

Sgt. Jason Burke, who coordinates training for the St. Cloud Police Department, said that since the mid-2000s, St. Cloud's police force has had some de-escalation training, including a session aimed at communicating with veterans in crisis and a course called Verbal Judo, which focuses on skills to prevent and respond to emotionally charged situations.

Training can help, but Burke stressed the importance of experience.

"You can go to 20 different training classes but going out and applying those things is something you have to go out and learn to do (through experience)," he said. "Each situation is different. You can't treat every argument that you go to the same."

One reason the department hasn't participated in more de-escalation training sessions is cost, Burke said. He estimated that a single session could cost about $10,000. Bringing in trainers would cost the department about $1,400.

Burke understands that developing an officer's communication skills is important because a good communicator can find a way to use words rather than force.

Military tools

The militarization of police forces across the country has become a common discussion topic, and it's an issue the St. Cloud Police Department has become a part of because of the department's possession of a mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicle known as a MRAP.

The MRAP has been used in standoffs, to serve high-risk search warrants and to block vulnerable targets from potential explosive devices, according to police. The vehicle was recently used when a man with a history of mental illness was reported to have fired shots at a Benton County deputy then fled.

Tools like the MRAP can help keep people safe, Heck said.

"It's all about the proper application of the tool," he said. "It's not to harass our citizens or scare them."

Tools and techniques aside, Burke said the best way to keep any situation from getting out of hand is to have officers who understand how to relate to the citizens they serve.

"The (officers) that can talk to people, those are the ones that are successful at this job," Burke said. "It's always something that we stress."